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Ten years in the industry is more than enough. I wasn’t fully done with it before being stabbed, but I’ve realized since then that life is short. All the money in the world won’t mean shit if I never get to enjoy my life.
I’ve never been as carefree as my bandmates, or even Ramsey. Not that my twin brother doesn’t like to party and enjoy the benefits that come with our level of fame, but it hasn’t gone to his head the way it has with the others.
Fucking my way through countless faceless bodies isn’t my idea of a good time. Being on the road doesn’t lead to healthy relationships, and some of my proclivities require privacy and trust. Cramming five people into a tour bus doesn’t allow for an ounce of the former.
Which brings me back to my initial sentiments.
“A fucking unbonded omega on a bus with five alphas?” I growl, taking a step toward Gavin. “It’s a disaster in the makings.”
“Six,” he corrects, reminding me that Fitzpatrick is here to replace me. “But that’s why we brought in a second bus.”
I scoff. “The label is really going all out to accommodate that nepo baby, huh?” My head shakes. Even with the level of fame we’ve achieved, they’ve always stuffed us into one bus.
Fitz is now related to one of the owners of the label. I’m pretty sure that says it all. I half liked the guy before this shit.
He should know better!
You don’t bring anyone that soft on tour. It’s asking for trouble. Add in her designation, and it makes this a monumental shit show waiting to happen.
“One bus was crammed full with just the five of you,” Gavin says calmly. “We’re trying to make this as easy as possible. And believe it or not, I heard you loud and clear about Carter.”
Carter is our rhythm guitarist. He also does some of the backup vocals with Ramsey and Jack. The main problem is fame has twisted him over the last couple years. He’s got more addictions than any of us will ever know, but one of the darker ones came out when I realized he was stealing my pain pills after I finally made it back to living with the band following my injury.
The only positive thing that came from the disaster with Carter is I’m a spiteful son of a bitch. I quit the meds cold turkey to ensure I cut off his supply. I live on a regimen of ibuprofen nowadays.
Over a year later, I’m still paying the consequences with permanent nerve damage. I was trying to do the right thing, and ultimately, the woman I stepped in to save was able to escape.
I don’t regret intervening, but I do wish I’d been better prepared. I’ve spent a lot of our downtime practicing MMA and self-defense. Much to my doctor’s dismay. The scar and tissue damage on my neck needed more time to heal before so much physical exertion, but I couldn’t put it off.
Mentally, that would have left me in a bad place. I had to know I’d never walk into a situation like that unprepared again.
Gavin crosses his arms over his chest. “We’re going to split the band between the buses.”
“I don’t want Carter anywhere near her.” I’m not fucking around, either. The more strung out he gets, the more questionable his behavior becomes, but women still love him. I’ve made Gavin and the label aware of the things I’ve seen, but I get the feeling they’re biding their time until this contract runs out. “What the fuck is she even doing here?”
“That’s complicated,” Gavin says. “But the decision came from the top. Jamen said it’s a personal favor to Donovan. In the last twenty-five years, Donovan has asked for less than a handful of concessions. That means she’s not going anywhere. Her name is Tinley Rhodes, and she’s a damn good photographer. I’ve seen her portfolio. She’s here to document the mini tour.”
“Ah, something else for them to market, in case we don’t come back.” I sigh, shaking my head at the dark sky. It’s the middle of the night, but due to the streetlamps and city lights, you can’t see a single star.
I don’t know exactly when I got so bitter.
“Hell of a way for you to introduce yourself,” Ramsey says, jogging up to join the conversation. “What the fuck, bro? She was terrified, and you were a total dick.”
“She was getting slammed around backstage when I came across her. She had every right to be scared. What the fuck is Fitzpatrick thinking? She’s an unbonded omega.” I give Ramsey a look that indicates he should know what I’m saying.
Her scent is nothing I’ve ever experienced. It’s sweet like pumpkin pie with a side of vanilla ice cream.
I barely stifle the growl that wants to escape. She’s delectable, and it’s not just her smell that I can’t seem to shake from my nostrils. It’s the big blue eyes and the way she instantly let me take the lead to keep her safe.
Fuck, this is why omegas are so dangerous.
Alpha impulses have one goal in life—find and protect our omega. There’s some breeding and claiming in there too, but I don’t let myself focus on that. She might not be my omega, but my instincts wouldn’t let me walk away without intervening, and that wasbeforeI realized her designation.
“Jack, Carter, and Xavier are on the other bus. They can keep the one that’s a pigsty. Ramsey, Fitz, the omega, and I will be on the new bus.” I glance between Gavin and Ramsey, but neither says a word. We’ve only been on the first bus long enough for the drive from New York to Chicago to start the tour, but it’s already trashed. “I still don’t think it’s smart to bring an unbonded omega on tour.”
“You’ll be away from her before you know it. It’s not even a standard-length tour,” Gavin says. “Aren’t the two of you supposed to be at the meet and greet?”
“Fuck,” I groan. I hate this shit. Half the time, the groupies can’t decide if they want to fuck me because I used to be able to sing, or if they want to say they screwed the giant, scarred alpha and took a walk on the dangerous side.
